If you don't earn it, plenty of others will

"Twenty beef skewers, twenty lamb skewers, five leek skewers, twenty oysters, and three kidneys!"

A bold string of orders rang out, drawing curious glances from nearby diners eager to see who was being so audacious.

What the hell?

Planning to stay up all night?

Dozens of probing eyes turned toward the source of the voice, and when they caught sight of the blonde-haired young man's female companion, their dull gazes suddenly widened.

Damn!

Who the hell could sleep after seeing that?!

Cheng Ya clung to Lin Yu's arm, deliberately tightening her grip and swaying it playfully as she cooed in a sugary voice,

"Ah, you're so bad~"

"Heh!"

"Just wait till you see how much worse I can get!"

Lin Yu smirked, flashing a roguish grin.

After speaking, he looked up and feigned surprise upon noticing Tang Manman standing frozen behind the barbecue stall.

"Oh, Tang Manman! What a coincidence!"

"Working here, huh?"

Tang's mother, busy at the grill, tensed up when she heard this punkish-looking blonde call her precious daughter by name. She immediately turned to Tang Manman and asked in a hushed voice,

"Manman, who is he?"

The question snapped Tang Manman out of her daze. Flustered, she nodded at her mother and replied,

"Y-yes, he’s my classmate… from school."

After answering, she lowered her head, avoiding both Lin Yu and her mother, and busied herself rearranging skewers that were already neatly stacked—as if suddenly overwhelmed with work.

"Auntie, you are…?"

Lin Yu put on an innocent act, pretending not to know.

"I'm Manman's mother."

Relieved to hear he was a fellow student, Tang's mother smiled warmly.

"Oh, so you're her mom!"

"Then you better give us a discount later."

Lin Yu joked.

"Of course."

Tang's mother nodded with a chuckle.

After the brief exchange, Lin Yu grabbed two beers and led Cheng Ya to a small table.

"Seriously, bro, she’s actually into you?"

The moment they sat down, Cheng Ya couldn’t hold back her shock, her eyes wide as if she’d seen a ghost.

She had clearly witnessed the girl’s stunned expression, the dazed look, the flustered panic, and the way she ducked her head to hide.

Especially that faint redness at the corners of her eyes before she looked away.

Even an idiot could tell what was going on in her heart.

"No kidding. Why else would I hire you?"

Lin Yu shot her a sidelong glance, unimpressed.

"Damn, bro. You’re something else."

Cheng Ya gave him a thumbs-up, genuinely impressed.

"But… why?"

Still baffled, she stared at Lin Yu with a puzzled frown and whispered,

"Bro, if a beauty like that is into you, why not just take her?"

"Why should I take her?"

Lin Yu scoffed, lowering his voice.

"There are plenty of pretty girls in the world. Should I just collect them all like Pokémon?"

"Am I a damn trafficker?"

Cheng Ya’s lips parted, then closed. For a moment, she was speechless, left only with a sarcastic twitch of her mouth. This guy’s actions really didn’t match his face.

With looks that could charm anyone—hell, even drag unwilling admirers in—he was out here pushing girls away.

Truly, appearances were deceiving.

"Honestly, bro, you’ve got some high standards for me."

Cheng Ya sighed, fully aware of the gap between herself and that girl.

They weren’t even in the same league!

Lin Yu’s dark eyes flicked toward her briefly before shifting away.

You’re selling yourself short.

"She’s coming—act lovey-dovey!"

Lin Yu spotted Tang Manman approaching with their food and quickly nudged Cheng Ya.

Cheng Ya reacted instantly, leaning against Lin Yu’s shoulder with a blissful smile.

Tang Manman walked over quietly and set down a portion of the skewers.

"Your order’s ready. Enjoy."

She turned to leave immediately.

"Hey, wait."

Lin Yu called out to stop her, then subtly signaled Cheng Ya to stick to the script.

Once she gave a covert okay, he grinned and said,

"Here, Cheng Ya, let me introduce you. This is the classmate I told you about—Tang Manman. The one who saved me before."

He pulled Cheng Ya closer, gesturing toward Tang Manman, who had turned back around.

"Oh, so this is her? What a pretty girl."

Cheng Ya nestled against Lin Yu, her tone lazy but her smile sharp as she teased,

"Quite the tale—beauty rescues the beast."

"So?"

"Want me to step aside and give you two some space?"

"What nonsense are you spouting?"

Lin Yu pretended to be offended, tightening his arm around her before smirking.

"You know me—looks don’t matter. They get boring after a while."

"I prefer someone like you—full of flavor, impossible to resist!"

Cheng Ya huffed playfully.

"Good taste."

...

At some point, Tang Manman had slipped away. Watching her retreating figure—head bowed, occasionally lifting an arm to wipe her face—Lin Yu let out a quiet sigh before turning back to the steaming skewers on the table.

"Eat up."

He pushed the leek and kidney skewers toward Cheng Ya.

"I don’t like this stuff."

She wrinkled her nose at the leeks and slightly charred kidneys, shoving them back toward him in disgust.

"You ordered them, you eat them."

"Don’t waste food. Dig in."

"Me?"

Lin Yu’s voice rose slightly as he glared at her.

"If I eat all this, how am I supposed to sleep tonight?"

"You’re finishing this!"

He shoved the skewers back aggressively.

When Cheng Ya frowned, ready to refuse again, he cut her off with a threat.

"You still want that 500 bucks or not?"

"You—!"

She glared back, indignant.

"You never said I’d have to eat this crap!"

"So what? Eat it anyway!"

Channeling the original host’s shamelessness, Lin Yu played the tyrant.

"You think 500 is easy money?"

"Go ask around—who gets paid that much for a few minutes of acting?"

"You’d better appreciate this gig!"

"Plenty of people would kill to take your place!"

"Now eat!"

"Or I’m docking you 300!"

Lin Yu threatened fiercely.

"Fine, fine, I'll eat it, I'll eat it."

Cheng Ya nodded through gritted teeth. She picked up a skewer of grilled leeks, her lips already twitching uncontrollably before the food even reached her mouth.

It looked like she was cursing under her breath...

...